Snow White
by whitecrossgirl
Summary: When the king makes an attempt on her life, Emily is forced to flee the place she was supposed to call home. Alone in the woods she finds the home of seven strangers who quickly become part of her family. However when the king finds out she's still alive, Emily's in more danger than ever before. Will she survive and where does King Aaron come into all of this?


**AN: After my story **_**'The Dancing Princesses'**_**, I wanted to try my hand at other fairy tales. I hope you enjoy this and have any you want to see, feel free to let me know.**

He was watching her again. She looked so much like_ her._ He supposed that was to be expected of identical twins. The same beautiful face, the same pale skin, rose red lips; only the hair was different. Where there was supposed to be locks the dark auburn of late summer, hair as dark as ebony was in its place. He had to have her. She was the closest thing he had to having his queen back. He wanted her for being identical to her sister but he also despised her for being the wrong sister. Why had she lived when her sister, his queen had died? He didn't know whether to marry or kill her. He supposed only time would tell.

"Why weren't you her?" King Ian muttered as he spotted movement below. The object of his gaze had become aware of his presence and paused in her tending of the freesias. She turned her head and for a moment he saw his queen before he saw her sister again. Under his watch, she slowly stood up and keeping his eye contact the whole time, dropped into a respectful curtsy before turning and walking away. He watched her go hungrily, if he tired, maybe he could overlook the differences. Maybe he could tolerate her as a queen even if she was not the one he wanted as his queen. She would be his queen. No other would do.

"You will be mine," King Ian vowed as there was a knock at the door. "Enter,"

"Sire our riders have spotted the envoys from Hotchner's kingdom, the king approaches." One of the guards informed the king.

"Very well," King Ian said as he dismissed the guard and reached for his crown. Diplomatic visits were always a problem but he supposed an alliance with Hotchner's kingdom would be beneficial. The king himself was rumoured to be a great warrior as well as a strong politician. As far as King Ian was concerned that either marked him as ally or foe. There was no in between. He would consider how best to get his bride to agree to marrying him afterwards. For now, it was time to play politics.

Princess Emily sat under her favourite oak tree, not caring if she got grass stains on her gown as she twisted a freesia between her fingers. She had seen how King Ian looked at her. Half the time she could see the hatred in his eyes as he looked at her and wished she were someone else, that she had been the one to die instead of Lauren. Then there was the other way he looked at her, like he wasn't seeing her but instead saw Lauren and what that meant if he seen Lauren, not her. It had been over a year since the accident that had taken Lauren's life. An accident she had barely survived either. Not for the first time, Emily wished Lauren had rejected the king's proposal when he had asked for her hand. She had begged Lauren not to marry him but Lauren was just as stubborn as she was and insisted she loved King Ian.

It was the one good thing she could ever say about King Ian. No matter how much they hated each other, and they had hated each other from the moment they had met; he had always treated Lauren well and it had been clear to Emily how much he adored her. Their marriage may have started as a political move but for both of them, it clearly had been far more than that. But now Lauren was gone and she was alone in this place; when Lauren and Ian married Emily had also gone to their kingdom to serve as both a diplomat for their parents' kingdom but also Lauren's chief lady in waiting. Emily had begged her parents to let her return home after Lauren's death but they insisted she stay. They claimed it was because she was still required to serve as an ambassador but she knew secretly that it was unbearable for her parents to look at her all the time and see her as one half of a whole; the way King Ian saw her now.

She wondered if any of them knew or cared that that was how she had to see herself every time she looked in a mirror.

"Take that!"

Emily was brought out of her thoughts by the sight of a small boy, no older than five, who was running around the gardens with a wooden toy sword in his hand. The small boy was clearly pretending to smite invisible enemies and his carefree fun brought a smile to her face. There was also something familiar about this child. Emily was about to call out to him when the small boy turned and spotted her.

"Look out my lady! There's a dragon about to eat you!" The boy claimed as he ran towards her. Playing along, Emily screamed dramatically and threw herself to the ground before pressing the back of her hand to her head.

"Save me Sir Knight! I don't want to be eaten by the dragon!" Emily claimed as the boy swung his sword in the air.

"Off with your head!" The boy claimed before he turned to Emily. "Who are you?"

"I'm Princess Emily, who are you?" Emily asked gently as the boy bowed.

"Prince Jack, my daddy's King Aaron." Jack explained proudly and Emily smiled. She and King Aaron had been childhood friends but it had been many years since they had seen each other. That was probably what made Jack familiar to her, she could remember herself and Lauren insisting to Aaron that they could play Knights too without being the damsels in distress.

"I know your father, where is he?" Emily asked and Jack shrugged his shoulders.

"With the other king in a meeting but they're boring so he said I could play." Jack explained and Emily looked at him.

"All by yourself?" Emily asked and Jack bit his lip. "Tell you what, if he asks we'll tell your daddy that I asked you to be my official protector against any dragons. Does that sound OK?"

"Yeah," Jack replied eagerly as Emily stood up. "There's one coming this way! You have to hide!"

A few hours later, after his initial meeting with King Ian ended, King Aaron left the room and began looking for his son. He had been advised that Jack would be completely safe in the palace gardens but ever since Haley's death, he had been more protective over his son. However that meant that when he reached the gardens to find the two guards he had assigned for his son's protection were stood talking with Jack nowhere to be seen; he wasn't impressed.

"Where is my son?" Aaron demanded but before they could answer, he could hear Jack laughing and followed that sound. To his surprise, at the other end of the gardens Jack was running around smiting imaginary monsters and there was a woman watching his son. She was leaning against a tree with her arms behind her back and he could hear her clearly encouraging Jack. Aaron had to smile at that; Jack had the ability to charm everyone he met, a talent he had so obviously got from Haley and it always lifted his spirits to see Jack having fun.

"What's going on here?" Aaron asked as he got close enough. The moment he heard his voice, Jack dropped his sword and jumped into his father's arms.

"Daddy I was fighting dragons and I had to save Princess Emily!" Jack explained excitedly and Aaron looked up at the woman who had moved away from the tree and picked up Jack's sword. Princess Emily. Yes he remembered her, how could he forget the stubborn little girl with dark braids who tackled him into the mud when he had told her princesses weren't allowed to play with swords?

"It's been a long time," Aaron said to Emily as he bowed to her and Emily curtsied back.

"It has, you have a wonderful son." Emily commented as she handed Jack his sword and looked at Aaron properly. Was this tall handsome man the same skinny little boy she used to bicker with as a little girl? Had his eyes always been that warm shade of brown?

"Thank you, you look very well." Aaron complimented. That was an understatement. Emily had grown into a beautiful woman whose dark hair shone under the sun and there was an easy smile on her face. Both of them had suffered losses recently; his wife Haley had been murdered by a madman who had attempted to take over his kingdom and he knew Queen Lauren had perished in that awful accident.

"Thank you," Emily replied unsure of what to say. Whilst she had had many admirers over the years, none of them had ever had this effect on her. They didn't make her feel butterflies in her stomach or find it difficult to know what to say and especially didn't make her heart beat faster.

Before either of them could say anything else, one of Emily's maids approached them to inform them that dinner would soon be served and Emily therefore needed to get ready. As with every time there was a visiting royal; a grand feast was being served for them to be followed by dancing. Throughout the feast, King Aaron and Princess Emily could barely keep their eyes from each other and when the dancing began, he had been the second to ask her to dance. King Ian of course got his first choice of the dancers, even though he rarely danced without Lauren. When they did get their chance to dance, they did so unaware of the dark looks that King Ian was giving them as he watched them interact and as they began a second dance, they barely noticed him leaving the room.

King Ian stormed back to his chambers almost blinded by rage. He seen how she acted with King Aaron as opposed to him. This would not do. She was supposed to marry him. She was supposed to do what she was supposed to do. Typical of Princess Emily. Never doing what she was supposed to and just proving how much she loathed him by taking away any chance of him having any trace of Lauren in his life. He had told himself he would either marry or murder her and it seemed his mind was made up. As he looked at his reflection in the mirror, his choice was made.

If he could not have her, nobody could.

However he himself could not deal the fatal blow. No, he could not do that. He was smarter than that. King Ian crossed to the door and turned to one of the guards stood outside.

"Fetch me the Royal Huntsman. Now." King Ian ordered as he waited impatiently for his huntsman to arrive. They had been friends from when they were boys and he knew that Liam could do this. It didn't take long for Liam to arrive and he spared the pleasantries. A late night summons like this meant only one thing.

"Who?" Liam asked

"The Princess. I want her dead and I want her heart as proof." Ian ordered and Liam nodded.

"Consider it done." Liam said and left the room. He had never liked the Princess. Both she and her sister had never won his trust. Queen Lauren had had his begrudging respect as she was a good queen but that sister of hers had been nothing but trouble from the moment she arrived. It would be a pleasure to kill her. The real question was how he was to lure her from the castle. By the time he had returned to the feast, Liam had been told that the princess had retired for the night and he knew better than to murder her in her own bed. Tomorrow. He would kill her tomorrow. It would give him time to plan and get her out of the way to get the job done.

It was early the next morning when the huntsman seized his chance. Emily was walking through the palace when he walked up to her, dutifully bowing. "Excuse me Your Highness but I was asked to find you. Your mare has escaped and the stable boys need your help to find her."

"Why do they need my help?" Emily asked, that didn't seem right to her. Her horse was always extremely well behaved and wouldn't just run off.

"Apparently she was spooked and apparently only you can really calm her down when she's in a state, all of them have by now gone into the forest to search for her." Liam lied, annoyed that the princess was too stubborn to believe him.

"Very well, let's go." Emily said, pushing her suspicions aside. Her mare Phoenix tended to be a good horse but it was true that when she was truly spooked; she only fully calmed down for Emily. Emily followed Liam as he led her out of the palace towards the forest that grew just beyond its back walls. She never liked these woods and as the path took them further from the palace, her suspicions returned in full force. Liam had lagged behind and as she looked around she couldn't see or hear any trace of the stable boys and when she looked at the ground, saw no hoof marks that would have come from her horse.

"Liam I don't think-" Emily's words died in her throat as she turned to see Liam standing just an inch behind her, a dagger in his hand raised ready to deliver a fatal blow. Reacting solely on instinct, Emily ducked and raised her fist which collided heavily with Liam's stomach. As he doubled over, winded, Emily took her chance and took off further into the trees. She could hear him coughing as he ran after her which only pushed her to run further into the woods. Emily kept running despite a growing pain in her side and her breath which came in burning ragged gasps to her throat. When she finally stopped to catch her breath; Emily stood still, pressed against the back of a tree as she tried to make sense of what had happened.

Liam had tried to kill her. The royal huntsman had tried to kill her, but why? Emily never caused him offense before, she had barely spoken to him before. Yet even as she tried to consider if that was a plausible reason for him wanting her dead; she knew what the truth was. Emily didn't want to acknowledge the truth but there was no denying it. The royal huntsman didn't just decide to kill people. He was ordered to do it and only one person could have ordered that. King Ian. Did he really loathe her that much, resent her that much for being the one who lived, for not being Lauren, that he wanted her dead? It sounded absurd but there was no denying what had just happened and there was no denying the truth. The king wanted her dead.

What was she to do now? Where was she to go? Where was she? Emily had ran that far that she didn't even know where she was. She had long abandoned the well-worn path that was used as a guide through these woods and she rarely travelled through them anyway. Even if she was to find the path again, she couldn't go back to the kingdom. If she did then who was to say King Ian wouldn't kill her on sight. Emily knew she hadn't doubled back in her escape attempt so maybe her best chance was to keep walking. She didn't even have anything with her; no money, no food, not even a cloak. Her first priority would be to find some sort of shelter.

After that, well, she would figure that out later.

"Excuse me have any of you seen Princess Emily?" Aaron asked a pair of courtiers who shook their heads. It was strange, nobody had seen any sign of the princess all day. The king felt a bad feeling grow in the pit of his stomach; he had asked Emily to meet with him the night before. He wasn't fully sure of what he felt for her but if he knew what he was feeling was true then King Aaron also knew he had to get her away from this place. If he wasn't mistaken, the way she looked at him, talked and danced with him last night meant that she felt the same way for him as he did for her.

As Aaron walked down another hallway and approached the corner, he could hear people talking. Pressing himself against the hall, he inched closer to the corner and could make out two distinct voices. One of which he recognised instantly as King Ian.

"Is it done?" King Ian asked.

"She's dead." Liam lied as he produced a bloody bundle from under his cloak.

"And the proof I asked you for?" King Ian asked as Liam handed him the bloody bundle. Beyond the corner, King Aaron didn't dare look to see what the proof was but he knew who the elusive 'she' was. Who else could it be? As he felt his heart ache at the idea of losing another woman he loved, part of Aaron wanted to storm around the corner and strike the king down where he stood. However he maintained enough self-control to turn and walk away. He would have to get Jack and order his men to leave immediately. He would not form an alliance with someone who so easily disposed of innocent people for no reason and the fact that it was Emily who had… that he had been unable to protect or save her hurt more than any physical wound he had suffered in his life.

As the morning turned to afternoon and it began to near evening; Emily kept walking through the woods. Her legs ached with exhaustion, her stomach was rumbling with hunger but it was her steady nerve and constant awareness of her surroundings which kept her going. There had to be some place she could go; a farmhouse, an inn, anywhere would be better than being out in the woods. There was no telling what dangers lurked in the woods and not just wild animals. Just as she began to think it was hopeless, Emily spotted what had to be a stone chimney between the trees.

With a renewed burst of energy, Emily stumbled through the trees and found herself in a small clearing. At the other side was the chimney she had spotted that was attached to a small stone house. The windows were dark which implied that maybe nobody was home but Emily tried the door anyway. There was no answer but the door itself was unlocked and so she made her way inside.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Emily called as she stepped further into the house and shut the door behind her. Again there was no answer and as she looked around, Emily saw seven chairs clustered around a table that was covered with dishes, some of which still had food on them. Unable to ignore the pains of hunger in her stomach any longer, Emily took a piece of bread that was sitting on the table and began to eat it as she examined the house further. There was a large fireplace with a cooking pot over it, a large stone basin which had a pile of dirty clothes in it. At the other side of the room there was a wooden staircase, at the top of which led Emily into a large bedroom with seven beds in it.

She had only intended to sit on one of the beds for a short rest but her exhaustion after all that had happened that day meant that Emily fell asleep almost instantly. She still didn't know where she was but she was away from the king and for the moment she was safe and that was all that mattered to her.

Unbeknownst to the princess, the house she was in was home to a group of seven travellers, four men and three women, who journeyed over the various borders that the forest was built on. They helped to protect the secluded rural hamlets scattered throughout the forest from bandits as well as helping bring supplies and medical treatment whenever needed. Their work often took them away from their home for days at a time but today was one of the lucky days when they were able to return home for the night.

However as they arrived home, immediately they knew something was wrong. Their many encounters with dangerous rogues and beasts alike meant their instincts were sharp and they easily spotted that one of the chairs was out of place, that a jug had been moved to the other end of the table and that the door at the top of the stairs was ajar when it had been shut that morning. Carefully and quietly, the seven reached for whatever weapon they had on them and made their way up the stairs to their bedroom. As they raised their weapons, ready to strike, it was the youngest of the seven who saw what, or rather who, was lying in one of their beds and shook his head.

"It's a woman," Spencer said and Derek looked at him.

"We can see that but who is she?" Derek asked and Jennifer lowered her bow and took a step forwards.

"Whoever she is, maybe we should let her sleep." Jennifer said kindly and behind her, Jason shook her head.

"She doesn't belong here, whoever she is." Jason said and David clapped him on the back.

"Come on Jason, Jennifer's right, besides by the looks of it she needs her rest." David said fairly as Alex took a step forwards and studied her along with Penelope.

"Whoever she is, judging by those clothes she's someone of social standing." Alex commented as Penelope carefully touched the hem of Emily's skirts, careful not to wake the sleeping stranger.

"That's expensive fabric," Penelope confirmed as she admired the style of the princess' dress. Whoever she was, she had good fashion sense and that was enough to win her approval.

"Noblewoman or not, she still broke in." Jason countered sternly and even Derek shook his head.

"Whoever she is, she must be lost or running from someone." Derek commented. The seven of them had been so busy talking that they had woken Emily who slowly sat up in the bed and looked at them all.

"Who are you?" Emily asked and David gave her a reassuring smile.

"I think we should be the ones to ask you that." David said and Emily nodded. Of course. This was clearly their home and she was the one who had broken in, eaten some of their food and slept in one of their beds. The least she could do was explain herself.

"I'm Princess Emily, I honestly didn't mean to break in or fall asleep. I've just been running all day and this is the only shelter I could find. I am sorry." Emily explained as the seven strangers looked at one another.

"You're Princess Emily?" Spencer asked and Emily smiled.

"Yes I am," Emily replied kindly as the men bowed and the women curtsied her. "You don't have to do that."

"I think we do Your Highness," Alex said and looked at her curiously. "But why were you running?"

"The king, King Ian, tried to have me killed this morning. We have never gotten along but I didn't think he hated me that much. The huntsman lured me into the woods this morning but when he tried to stab me, I managed to escape. I've been running all day and I have nowhere else to go." Emily explained and as she spoke, Penelope sat on the bed and took her hand as all of them, except for Jason looked at her sympathetically.

"Could you not return to your own kingdom?" Derek asked and Emily shook her head.

"He would want proof of my death and if I returned home or went to any of the other kingdoms, word would get out and he would try and kill me again and if he were to do that in any of the other kingdoms, especially my home, it could be seen as an act of war. I cannot endanger anyone else; you were right, I can't stay here. I can't endanger you either." Emily said, her last comment directed at Jason who looked uneasy.

"You can't go anywhere else, like you said King Ian is a ruthless, determined man. If he finds out you're alive, there's no telling what he'll do." Derek said. "Don't worry about us, we can look after ourselves and you too."

"Exactly, there's no place safer for you. If he finds out you're alive then he would mostly likely go to where he thinks you'd be. Nobody would ever think of looking for you here." David reassured Emily who looked up at them, unable to believe her luck.

"I can't ask you to do that." Emily said.

"You're not, we're offering." Spencer spoke up, Emily noticed he was hanging back from the rest of them and she wondered if her sudden presence was making him feel awkward.

"I still can't accept." Emily said and Alex smiled at her.

"We don't normally say this but Derek is right. This is the safest place for you and we want to help you." Alex reassured and Emily nodded.

"I don't even know your names." Emily admitted and Jennifer smiled at her.

"I'm Jennifer, this is Alex and Penelope is sitting beside you. This is Derek, David, Spencer is over there and this is Jason." Jennifer introduced and when each of their names was called; Alex smiled, Penelope squeezed her hand, Derek and David smiled at her, Spencer gave a little wave whereas Jason remained stoic.

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you." Emily said as she got off the bed. "I don't have money, I can't pay you to let me stay."

"Don't worry about that," Alex reassured and Emily looked at them.

"Please, let me do something to repay you. You're granting me food, shelter, protection; you're risking your own lives. I can't let that go without some form of repayment." Emily insisted and the seven looked at one another.

"We don't want any sort of repayment however our work tends to take us away from home for days at a time, do you think you'd be able to help keep an eye on things here?" David asked her and Emily nodded eagerly. Whilst being a princess meant she was used to servants and cooks doing work for her, she was smart enough to know how to use a broom and had been taught to cook. She would be able to do that; she was that grateful at having somewhere safe to stay that she would do anything.

"I can do that!" Emily replied eagerly as she was led down the stairs. As Jason started a fire and David shared out the food they had brought with them; Emily didn't say much but instead took the time to observe the seven, how they interacted with each other and around her. It was clear that they had all known each other for a long time and were familiar with each other to know what they were doing. As they sat down together to eat, Emily knew that she was extremely lucky to have found them all.

After they had eaten, a debate quickly started on where Emily would sleep. All seven, even Jason, had offered her their beds but Emily had refused. She was already sharing their food, fire and home; she didn't want to take one of their beds either. Eventually Emily won and after being given some spare blankets, managed to make a makeshift bed for herself on the floor near the fire. It wasn't the most comfortable thing she had slept on but she was that tired and grateful that she had somewhere safe to sleep that she didn't care.

As she felt herself start to drift off to sleep, Emily's thoughts turned to Aaron. She wondered if he knew what had happened to her. If Ian had begun to spread lies about her supposed demise. How would he react to her 'death'? Would she ever see him again? Yesterday had been the first time she had seen him in so long but she knew what she felt for him; how he made her feel. How far away was his kingdom from wherever she was, hidden deep in the woods? Maybe someday they would meet again.

Maybe.

Over the next few days, Emily got to know the seven travellers better; to help her settle in to their home they ensured their day's work always brought them home in the evening and she learnt how to prepare different meals which would be ready for their arrival. She also learnt more about what they did, how they travelled from village to village protecting them from bandits, helping deliver supplies or medical treatment, the different adventures and in some cases misadventures they had had. Emily learnt how each of them had something special or unique about them. Spencer's intelligence, David's wry wit, Jason's stoicism, Alex's supportiveness, Penelope's optimism, Jennifer's kindness and Derek's courage. As the days turned to weeks, Emily found herself considering the seven strangers who took her in as family; finding a sense of security and belonging that she had never felt since Lauren had died. It obviously wasn't the same as having her sister back but it was still a family to her.

She still thought about King Aaron a lot. She knew it was foolish of her to; that because of the situation she was in, it was highly unlikely they would ever meet again. Even so, she couldn't stop her heart from making her feel this way no more than she could stop the warm feeling she got when she remembered his smile, his kindness, the way that talking was effortless to them, how they had danced together and memories of their childhood. Bickering over whether girls could be warriors, playing hide-and-seek with Lauren, pulling tricks on their parents when they were having one of their many boring meetings. He had changed so much from when they were children but in some ways he hadn't changed at all. She wondered if he ever thought about her. Did he think there was a possibility she was alive? Who knew what kind of vile lies King Ian had spread since she had been forced to flee. Did he think there was a chance they could meet again? Did he ever want to see her again? Did he feel what she felt? Or was she just driving herself crazy?

"Who is he?" Alex asked Emily, causing her to jump and almost drop the basket of newly dried clothes she had been about to take back into the house.

"Who?" Emily asked, noting that Jennifer and Penelope were also with Alex.

"The man you're thinking about." Alex replied simply and there was that hidden awareness that Emily respected about her. She had never mentioned King Aaron but she supposed that it probably wasn't hard to work out that her heart belonged to someone.

"It doesn't matter, I'll never see him again." Emily replied and Penelope gave her a reassuring smile.

"You don't know that." Penelope reassured before grinning at her. "Is he gorgeous?"

"Very," Emily confessed, trying to prevent the blush rising on her cheeks.

"Did you kiss him?" Jennifer asked cheekily and Emily shook her head.

"Even if we had, a lady never kisses and tells but he did dance with me and he walked with me, talked with me. He made me feel happy for what felt like the first time in so long," Emily trailed off as she remembered that one magical night before everything went wrong. "Like I said, we'll never see each other again."

"You don't know that, anything can happen." Jennifer reassured Emily as she picked one of her shirts out of the basket. Emily set the basket on the table and began folding the clothes into seven separate piles for each of them to pack. As she did, Emily noticed Spencer was cleaning his sword and talking about how it was made and the intricacies of forging metalwork.

"You know a lot about that," Emily commented as Spencer looked up, surprised that she was there.

"It's just knowledge of how metal reacts to high levels of heat, making it easier to mould and shape." Spencer replied and Emily shook her head.

"You know more than I do. When my sister and I were little we were never allowed to even touch any of the knights' swords. Apparently it was too unladylike to know how to use a sword. We were taught to use arrows however. Our kingdom used to have an archery competition every year and we begged our mother and father to let us learn." Emily recalled and Spencer shook his head.

"I prefer swords, I-I have problems with my aim when I use an arrow." Spencer admitted and Emily smiled.

"It can't be that bad." Emily said and spencer shook his head.

"I once sent an arrow into the top of a tree. That was in the opposite direction of the target." Spencer explained and Emily smiled.

"Well, I guess we all have our talents. I can shoot but I could never get to grips with music. Lauren could play any instrument and sing like an angel. I sounded like a cat had been strangled." Emily laughed.

"You told the others you can dance," Spencer said and Emily nodded.

"The only thing related to music I'm good at." Emily agreed. "Do you dance?"

"I don't know how," Spencer admitted. He couldn't even master the simplest of jigs. Derek was a better dancer but he could play music. Music was basically memorising a series of numbers as notes and he could do things like that; things that involved his mind and not his feet.

"Maybe I'll show you some steps sometimes," Emily smiled as she finished sorting the clothes and went to assist David with the cooking. Whenever they were home, David preferred to cook but Emily wanted to help; her own cooking skills really needed improving. She could at least not burn everything now. It was like everything else that was learnt really; it just took time.

And it seemed time was the one thing that she had more than enough of these days.

"Say. That. Again."

King Ian looked at the men stood before him. A pair of his knights had been patrolling deep into the woods; they may have had gone beyond his borders but in the middle of the woods; who was to say where one king's land ended. They weren't even two of the knights he knew by name, just a pair of lowly squires knighted too soon but what they had said intrigued him, simply by the outlandishness of their claim.

"We were deep in the woods Sire and we came across this house. A small one, insignificant. We were going to pass it but then we saw her. At first we thought she was a peasant girl but then we seen her face. It was definitely Princess Emily. But since we thought she was missing, we decided to keep watching to see who held her hostage. As evening fell seven of them returned to the house. They didn't see us but one of them definitely called her by name as he entered. It's her Your Highness. It's the princess." The first knight, Sir Jeremy said. He had hardly believed his eyes when he had spotted the princess. Ever since she had apparently took her horse out and never returned, nobody had heard or seen a trace of her since.

"Where is this house?" King Ian asked, keeping his voice steady as rage built inside him. Apparently Emily had come back from the dead or there was a liar in his midst. One thing he could never stand for or accept was disloyalty. A man could steal, lie or kill but if his loyalty was to you then there was not an issue with that. Once you became uncertain of where his loyalties lay; there was trouble and he did not take any sign of possible disloyalty lightly.

"Deep in the woods, a good four miles over the Western border. It's very secluded, the only one for miles." Sir Sean explained and King Ian nodded before he turned his attention to the guard standing at the door.

"Find me the royal huntsman. Now." King Ian ordered and as the guard left the room, he stood up from his throne and walked over to the two knights, his hand easily sliding to reach the dagger he kept concealed in his sleeve for this very reason. "You two men will not speak a word to anyone about what you seen in the forest."

"But Sire," Sir Sean said but that was all he managed to say before he felt the blade drag across his throat. Before Sir Jeremy could escape, he was grabbed from behind and met the same fate. King Ian looked at the bodies of the two knights who had brought him the news of the princess's escape and the treachery within his very walls.

"It wasn't an order." King Ian said to the bodies as the door opened and Liam walked in and froze at the sight of the two bodies on the floor as the king turned to him. "You told me she was dead."

Once he had punished the treacherous huntsman, King Ian shut himself in his chambers and paced around in a rage. How? How did she always manage to survive? The accident admittedly had been nobody's fault but she still shouldn't have lived. His best huntsman apparently couldn't keep up with an unarmed girl but could chase down a doe easier. No, it seemed that if he really wanted her dead then he would have to do it himself. But how? How could he do that if she supposedly had seven bodyguards to protect her? He would need to get them out of the way and then he would be able to finish her off once and for all. He would need a fitting death for the princess. Something that she wouldn't expect or be able to defend herself from. If she knew he had found her, she would expect a sword in her or an arrow to the heart. No, this had to be a clever death; a cunning murder which he could get away with. The king knew exactly how to do it and to make sure that this time, she wouldn't survive.

A few days later, Emily stood in the doorway of the house as the seven travellers prepared to visit one of the further away towns they protected. Their supply run would take a few days but she knew she would be OK. It wasn't the first time she'd be left on her own but even so, all seven of them seemed determined to remind her to be safe.

"You will be careful, won't you? I'd hate for anything to happen." Penelope said and Emily hugged her tightly.

"I'll be fine Penelope, I promise." Emily reassured as Jennifer walked over.

"Remember, if someone should come near then stay in the house and don't talk to them." Jennifer reminded and Emily smiled at her.

"I know Jennifer, I'll be careful." Emily said as Alex caught her eye.

"Don't forget, it's easy to get lost if you're getting apples or berries. Stay close." Alex warned and Emily felt a genuine smile at that comment. She was still adapting to the woods.

"I know, seriously I'll be fine." Emily reassured. She appreciated their concern but she knew that she had to be careful at all times. She wasn't a child after all. It seemed Derek was aware of that when he came up to her.

"We're just looking out for you Princess, come here." Derek said as they hugged tightly and behind him Spencer nodded.

"We just want you to be safe. The likelihood of something happening to you is extremely rare but there is a possibility for it. Please be careful." Spencer asked and Emily smiled warmly as she hugged him.

"You know I will, I promise." Emily said sincerely, she could never say 'no' to Spencer. He was like the little brother she had always wanted.

"Remember keep the doors and windows locked. Like Jennifer and Spencer said; you need to be careful. That scumbag king could have spies anywhere." David warned and Emily nodded. She hadn't needed to be told that twice.

"I know I will, make sure all of you come back safe." Emily said as she hugged David and Jason gave her a look as he slung his bag onto his back.

"Just don't do anything stupid." Jason warned and Emily nodded. He still hadn't shown any signs of warming to her. Then again, in all the time she had lived with him, Jason only really seemed to show any sort of good temperament and kindness towards Spencer and treated him like a son. However this could also be his gruff way of showing Emily that he cared and so she took it in as good favour as she could. One benefit of being raised in a world of politics was that she could do that easily.

"I won't Jason. Please come home soon." Emily said as she waved them off. As they disappeared from sight, Emily walked back into the house and began to clear up the breakfast dishes. As she stood elbow deep in soapy water, her mind once again wandered to thoughts about Aaron. She didn't even know where she was, which kingdom the house was technically in. she knew it was unlikely that they would ever see each other again, still, she could dream could she not?

When the dishes were finished, Emily grabbed a broom and began sweeping out the house. Eight people living together in the woods meant there was a lot of dirt that got tramped into the house so sweeping was part of her daily routine. Not that she minded, somehow it was relaxing clearing away all the dirt and dust from the house. As Emily opened the door to sweep the dirt and dust out of the house, she could hear someone calling out through the trees.

"Help, won't someone help a poor old man."

Remembering the warnings given to her, Emily quickly ran back into the house and bolted the door. She grabbed a knife from the table and slipped it up her sleeve and Emily wished that whoever it was would just bypass the house and keep going. It seemed that wasn't the case and there was suddenly a knocking at the door.

"Is anyone there? Please help me." King Ian called through the door, he had really surprised himself with his disguise. Nobody would be able to recognise him looking as he did; a crooked-back, wrinkled old man. He knew his plan would work. It had to. He knew she was there and that she wouldn't be able to resist helping him.

Emily stood against the door. Her instincts were telling her not to open it, that maybe the man was trouble. Another part of her raised the possibility that it was genuinely a man who was lost in the woods. She had always been raised with the knowledge that her duty was always to help those in trouble and those less fortunate than herself. Slowly Emily drew the bolt back and opened the front door a fraction, just enough for her to see the stranger but not give him the chance to enter.

"What is the matter?" Emily asked the old man. He kept most of his face hidden by his cloak but his stooped stature and wizened hands made no attempt to hide his age. Still, Emily remained on her guard; just because he was old, that didn't mean he wasn't dangerous.

"I got lost in the woods and I'm very thirsty. Please can you give me some water and some directions?" Ian lied easily, he could see how she was clearly expecting some sort of attack but he wasn't stupid, he had a better idea for her.

"I'm not sure if I can, I'm not supposed to even speak to you." Emily replied, hoping she sounded more authorities than rude before remembering that whilst she was a princess, she was still in hiding.

"Nobody has to know, please, I feel like I could collapse with thirst. You wouldn't leave a defenceless old man out here to die would you?" Ian asked, knowing exactly how to appeal to her weakness of always wanting to help others. He knew it would be unbearable for her to consider the idea of someone dying because of her. How ironic, he thought. Ian waited for a moment before feeling a burst of triumph as Emily slowly opened the door wider.

"Just some water, I don't know how to get back to the road. My siblings go out to work and I look after the house." Emily said; it wasn't a full lie. She did know how to get to the road but she just wanted him to leave. There was something _off_ about this old man. Emily led him to the well and hoisted up a bucket of water and giving him a cupful. Once he had drained the cup, the man handed it back and reached into a sack in his hands.

"Allow me to thank you, here, take this." Ian said as he produced an apple from his bag. Unbeknownst to Emily, the apple had been laced with a powerful poison which had only one cure; one that was impossible to find. That was the plan, the apple would put her into a deathlike sleep and the seven ragmen she lived in would assume she was dead and bury her alive.

"You don't have to," Emily said quickly but with surprising agility, she found the apple being pressed into her hands.

"I insist, please my dear. I want to thank you for helping me." Ian said and Emily gave him a look as she considered the apple in her hands. It was a firm, ripe fruit and its red skin looked tempting under the sun. It wasn't long since breakfast but if it pleased the strange man and got him to leave, then she was willing to do it. Emily bit into the skin and tasted the sweetness of the fruit, the crunchy ripeness of a good fruit.

Only it was too good. Emily fell to her knees as she felt her throat tighten. She tried to spit the apple out but Ian's hand clamped itself over her mouth, forcing her to chew and swallow. Emily looked up into his eyes and felt a stab of terror as she recognised his eyes. Ian's eyes. Emily tried to pull the knife out from her sleeve and thrust it upwards, managing to strike King Ian in the neck with the last of her failing strength. Before she could do anything else, she felt her throat swallow the apple and the world begin to go dark as the poison rapidly made its way through her body. Emily felt her head spin as the world went dark and she fell into blackness.

Ian felt the knife pierce his neck and warm sticky blood began to soak his fingers. Fumbling desperately, he pulled the knife from the wound but already he knew it was too late. He collapsed to the ground and within moments, the villainous king was dead. As the last traces of life left his body, the magic he had used to hide his identity wore off, leaving no question as to who had killed Princess Emily.

"How could you manage to hit that huge rock? You knew you could have avoided it." Derek said to David as the seven returned home that evening. They had been almost halfway on their journey when one of the axles on the wagon had broken, prompting them to turn back to repair it and set off again in the morning.

"It was an accident kiddo, they happen." David said defensively as they reached the clearing. "What's that?"

Jennifer, Derek, Spencer and Alex all rushed forwards, through the clearing to Emily's side where she still laid, lifeless on the ground next to the bloody body of King Ian. Both Spencer and Alex attempted to revive Emily to no avail and Derek held tightly onto Penelope as she cried for her friend to wake up. Jennifer looked helplessly around at the dead king's body which had one of their knives next to it. David and Jason examined the king's body, taking note of the fatal neck wound. Whatever happened to Emily, before she died, she had been able to kill the king who had wanted her dead. However none of them could tell what had happened to Emily. There were no wounds on her body, no sign of foul play. She was dead but they had no idea how she died. It was Alex who spotted the apple hidden under Emily's skirts from the angle she had fallen. There was a single bite mark out of it and they came to the same conclusion. Poison.

It didn't seem right to them to bury her in the ground. Instead they decided to place her body in a glass coffin which would allow them to watch over her. The glass coffin was placed in an area near the edge of the clearing that was surrounded by wildflowers and where the sun would always hit it and protect her from the rain. As for the king, they decided to leave his body in the woods where it could be found by his own men and let them deal with things. He didn't deserve any moment of their time for what he had done to Emily. The seven of them, all of them including Jason, were devastated by her death and would take turns standing vigil over her, protecting her in death the way they hadn't the chance to in life.

"What's that?"

King Aaron looked around as one of his knights pointed through the trees. It took a moment before he noticed the strange glinting light through the trees. Carefully he led his men towards the light, one hand carefully on the hilt of his sword in case it was an ambush. The king and his men had been out on a hunt and the chase had brought them deep into the woods. As the trees thinned out into a clearing with a small house; King Aaron was the first to notice the peculiar sight of seven men and women huddled around what appeared to be a glass box.

"Excuse me," King Aaron spoke and the seven immediately stood and either bowed or curtsied and the king realised he knew who they were. They had been loyal subjects of his who insisted on ensuring the peasant folk in all the secluded towns were protected. What he didn't know was why they had been huddled on the ground and all appeared to have been weeping.

"Your Highness," David said thickly as Aaron dismounted his horse and saw what, or rather who, was in the glass box.

"Impossible," Aaron said as he stepped closer. The closer he got however, the better he could see the truth. Lying inside the glass coffin, still as death was Emily. Nobody had seen or heard anything of her for months and Aaron believed that she had died a long time ago at the hands of King Ian who apparently was now dead himself. Yet if that were true, she would not look the same as she did that day when he seen her in the palace gardens. "What happened?"

"It was King Ian, he poisoned her. The princess told us he wanted her dead." Derek explained as Aaron and some of his knights lifted the lid from the coffin.

"What are you doing?" Jennifer asked and Aaron looked at them.

"Her family, her people have a right to know what happened. Plus she was a very good friend, I'd like to say my goodbyes to her." Aaron replied calmly and the seven shared a look before nodding. Aside from everything else, they could not refuse a request from their king.

Aaron stood next to Emily's body, taking in the sight of her pale skin that contrasted so sharply with her dark hair. As he touched her hand, he found it was warm due to having been in the sun. Aaron felt his heart break at the sight of the woman he had fallen in love with lying dead. The sorrow, mixed in with the love he felt and his regret of not being able to help her was what prompted him to do what he did next. Not caring that his men and the seven were watching him, Aaron leaned over and pressed his lips to Emily's.

"I'm so sorry," Aaron apologised as he knelt beside her and bowed his head. His men did the same, lowering their weapons or sweeping off their hats to bow in a sign of respect for the dead princess. Aaron kept his hand carefully over Emily's and looked up in amazement as he felt it shift underneath his own.

Emily could feel herself starting to wake up. Slowly she opened her eyes, sat up and looked around her. There was Spencer, Jennifer, Alex, Penelope, Derek, David and Jason who were looking at her with surprised awe. Emily then felt a tight squeezing on her hand and looked down to see King Aaron looking up at her, a look of shock and adoration in his eyes.

"You're alive!" Aaron said and Emily smiled at him. She was alive, but how?

"I don't understand, King Ian poisoned me." Emily explained and she felt Aaron squeeze her hand tightly again and as they looked at each other, they knew the king would pay.

"There must have been something that cured you." Spencer said and Penelope smiled at Emily before looking at Jennifer and Alex who had also come to the same conclusion.

"A true love's kiss." Penelope sighed happily. Emily turned to Penelope, about to argue of the absurdity of a true love's kiss before Aaron helped her out of the glass coffin and smiled at her. It was the same smile he had given her that night he danced with her; only it seemed brighter, stronger. There was more emotion and adoration in that look than she had ever seen before and her argument was wiped from her mind as the king silently asked her permission before they kissed again. As they broke apart, Emily smiled back at Aaron, maybe there was something to this True Love's Kiss malarkey.

"So what happens now?" Emily asked Aaron as he smiled at her and dropped down to one knee.

"Now, Princess is when I ask you the one question I've wanted to ask you ever since I saw you again that day. Will you marry me?" Aaron asked Emily who nodded her head.

"Of course I will." Emily replied as he kissed her again as everyone else applauded them. As they broke apart, Emily found herself on the receiving end of overjoyed hugs from the seven who had kept her safe and became her family. Even Jason hugged her tightly, relieved that she was safe. When they finished hugging, Emily felt Aaron wrap his arms around her again and she leaned backwards into his embrace before he let go of her and helped her mount his horse. As Emily said her farewells to the seven travellers and allowed Aaron to lead her back through the woods towards his palace, she caught his eye and smiled at him; she wasn't sure what the future had in store for her and Aaron but she found that she didn't care. All that mattered was that she was alive, had a family who cared for her and a man she loved and was loved by in return.

She knew that they all would live happily ever after.


End file.
